Year : Sophomore

Sport : Lacrosse

Major : Nursing

Chimes: Could you introduce yourself?

Verett: My name is Emma Verrett. I’m from around Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and I graduated from BCCS (Beaver Country Christian School.) I’m known as EV on my lacrosse team because there are three Emmas on the team. I play midfield.

Chimes: What got you into lacrosse?

Verett: In eighth grade, my friend’s brother’s girlfriend’s father started a club team and she asked me to play with her, along with a few other friends. And that’s how I fell in love with the sport.

Chimes: Did you play any other sports at the time?

Verett: I played a little volleyball in middle school, but it was only club stuff. I grew up playing mostly soccer. And, going into high school, I had the option to continue soccer on the men’s team. But this meant that we girls wouldn’t be able to play as much. And when it got to higher games (like championships or playoffs), we wouldn’t be allowed to play at all. And so I switched to volleyball, a fall sport. But I wanted another, more physical sport with more running. And so I played lacrosse, a spring sport, with a public school near me because my high school didn’t have a lacrosse team.

Chimes: How did you go about playing lacrosse at a different school?

Verett: In 8th grade, my coach for the lacrosse club team was the coach for that public high school’s team as well. Because I was going to high school, my coach asked me if I would like to play in high school. And through that, the coach talked to the athletic director and asked if a co-op with be possible. So, we started with a co-op with just lacrosse. And then, my sophomore year of high school, they started to allow a co-op with women’s soccer at the public school and men’s volleyball at BCCS.

Chimes: What kind of activities did you enjoy outside of sports?

Verett: I was pretty involved with my church’s youth group as a student leader. I also worked with my gym teacher and helped her plan classes and set up equipment. And I was involved with the theater arts and did musicals from the 6th grade to the end of high school.

Chimes: How did those different areas come together in your life?

Verett: In all those areas, you can express yourself in a goofy way. I want to be working with kids, in pediatrics, and theater arts help you with being goofy and acting out. In addition, sports gave me a good attitude. I could always just be myself in all of those activities.

Chimes: How do you think sports has helped you grow and equipped you to take on your future goals?

Verett: I think, first off, in general, you just learn how to interact with kids through sports. You know how to play some sports with them, which is always fun to do. But also, you learn this overall theme of “Don’t give up no matter what. Push through.” You also learn a “We’re in this together” kind of thing. So when it comes to nursing, I could show a kid that, “Hey, you’re fighting this but I’m here with you.”

This interview has been edited and condensed.